For February bar exam takers, here's a round-up of my earlier posts to help you study:
How to take exams with the champion’s mindset
8 times smarter : learning with multiple intelligences
Getting ready for the bar exam
How to create memorable flashcards
8 bar exam preparation myths busted
Mnemonics to remember the future estates
It is this time of the year again when many students feel that exams are appoaching 
with the speed of light. And there is still so much to do. Here is a round-up of my earlier exam tips to help you study:
To choose or not to choose: multiple choice tests
Get your pens ready: it’s time to scribble
Put on your detective hat: we are going issue-spotting
5 studying myths dispelled
Strategies and tools to plan your exam preparation
How to take exams with the champion’s mindset
The mosaic of legal analysis
Best diet before a test
Grant Morris raises this interesting question in the research paper entitled "Preparing Law Students for Disappointing Exam Results: Lessons from Casey at the Bat." The article highlights the emotional toll of the first-year finals and offers a strategy to prepare law students for the realities of the exam results. Here’s the abstract:
It is a statistical fact of life that two-thirds of the law students who enter law school will not graduate in the upper one-third of their law school class. Typically, those students are disappointed in their examination grade results and in their class standing. Nowhere does this disappointment manifest itself more than in their attitude toward their classes. In the fall semester of their first year, students are eager, excited, and willing to participate in class discussion. But after they receive their first semester grade results, many students withdraw from the learning process - they are depressed and disengaged. They suffer a significant loss of self-esteem. This article considers whether law professors should prepare their students for the disappointing results - the poor grades - that many are certain to receive. I assert that professors do indeed have a role to play - in fact, a duty to their students - to confront this problem. I offer a strategy by which professors can acknowledge students' pre-examination anxiety and deal constructively with their impending disappointment. There are lessons to be learned from Casey at the Bat, Ernest Lawrence Thayer's immortal poem about failure.
Hat tip to Law School Innovation.
Is the stress of approaching finals getting to you? If so, Law School Academic Support Blog has some advice on how to maintain a positive outlook in this challenging time and help others do the same.
Are you too busy to even consider any positive changes? In his article “Let Your Subconscious Mind Go to Work for You,” David J. Pollay describes an exercise you can do every morning to harness the power of your subconscious. It won’t take a lot of time, and the results may be well worth it.
What do you do to manage your stress?
"Backup Systems Avert Loss of N.Y. Bar Exam Essays," Joel Stashenko reports for New York Law Journal:
"Douglas M. Winneg of Software Secure Inc. said in an interview that he believes the essay question answers uploaded from the computers of approximately 5,200 people who used laptops to take the bar exam last week have been accounted for. The Cambridge, Mass.-based company is in the process of transferring the computer data to another company, which will print the essays and transfer them to the state Board of Law Examiners for grading."
Phew!
As the date of the July bar exam approaches, many of you may experience sudden panic from 
time to time. Here’s a quick trick to quiet those worries. Do some high energy exercises for just a few minutes. It has to be something vigorous enough to distract your mind from negative thoughts, so do a set of push-ups, sit-ups, some kickboxing moves or just run up and down stairs. It will release the tension build-up in your body and ease your anxiety. And it’s a good way to spend your study break, so give it a try.
What do you do to lower your stress level?
The best diet is a balanced diet that gives you the vitamins, minerals, 
fiber, protein, and carbohydrates that your body needs to function properly. Having said that, you may want to tweak you diet a bit right before the test. Here's how:
What do you like to eat before the test?
Here are a few mnemonics to help you remember the future estates:
Reversionary interest:
1) Possibility of Reverter: PORE
2) Right of Entry / Power of Termination: RE-POT
3) Reversion: REVERSE
Remainders:
1) Indefeasibly Vested Remainder: INVEST
2) Vested Remainder Subject to Open: STOP
3) Contingent Remainder: CORE
4) Vested Remainder Subject to Complete Defeasance: CD
Executory Interests: EXECs
1) Shifting Executory Interest: Shifty Exec
2) Springing Executory Interest: Springy Exec
The following interests may violate the Rule Against Perpetuities (RAP):
1) vested remainders subject to open;
2) contingent remainders;
3) executory interests
To remember them, use RAP STOPS CORE EXECS
Myth #1:
You need to read all the relevant materials for the subject matter before you start doing the practice questions.
In reality, you want to start practicing as soon as possible. You won’t have time to read and memorize everything. Practice questions are a tool to train yourself to recognize legal patterns, applicable legal standards and important buzz words. Work with the text of the question: circle, underline, highlight the key words and phrases so that they would jump out at you when you take the exam.
Myth #2:
The bar exam is about memorizing the black letter law.
The truth is that pure rote memorization won’t get you through. The bar exam is also about the application of the black letter law, time-management, stress-management and endurance. You need to work on all of these aspects to be ready. Just like you can’t prepare for a marathon just by reading books about it, you can’t pass the bar exam just by reading outlines. Simulate the real conditions of the bar exam as much as you can: time yourself, do practice exams, submit your essay answers for review.
Myth #3:
You don’t have to listen to all the lectures, after all, you already have your class handouts and outlines.
In realty, listening to the lectures can do more for you than just reading. Good professors strive to make their presentations memorable. I still remember some of my bar course professors because they were like a one-man or one-woman show. It’s good to have the information explained to you in a variety of ways, and you get a chance to ask questions. Also, the content of those handouts sometimes has to be updated, corrected or explained in further detail. So, don’t skip on lectures.
Myth #4:
You are not supposed to have any social life when you study for the bar.
In reality, you need social support even more when you are under pressure. Find time to connect with you family and friends. Go to the movies, eat out, do something fun, or better yet, play sports together. It will give your brain a chance to recharge and help you relieve stress.
Myth #5:
When you study for the bar, you don’t have time to exercise or sleep a lot.
The truth is that you don’t have time NOT to exercise or sleep. You will burn out before the big day. Exercise is good for your brain, it allows you to stay physically and mentally fit. And please take those afternoon naps, they enable the brain to consolidate your memories, which is useful taken into account all the information that you need to remember.
Myth #6:
You need to do your own outlines and flashcards to prepare.
If you have time to do your own flashcards, that’s great. I didn’t. I think, your time is better spent practicing. You will have enough written materials to absorb if you are taking a bar prep course (and I hope you are).
Myth #7:
You don’t need to worry about the essays as long as you do well on the MBE portion of the exam.
While the score allocations vary from state to state, most people will need both strong MBE scores and good essay grades. So write out those essay answers.
Myth #8:
You really step it up a few days before the exam.
Ah, good old cramming, it doesn’t work. In reality, you want to cut your studying hours down right before the exam. Take time to get yourself in a good, healthy place so that you can regain your freshness of mind, focus and clarity.
Other myths:
“A law student failed his California bar exam because he stopped to assist a classmate who suffered a heart attack.”
“A law student left for a bathroom break and when she got back, she couldn't find her seat because the tables and chairs looked identical in the enormous room.”
“Suddenly a woman started galloping down the aisles, flailing her arms, yelling, “I am a covenant running with the land!”
True or false? I have no idea. Check Urban Legends Reference Pages. Maybe, they know.
For those of you taking the bar exam. 
Question:
The Fox conveys the Foxacre “to the Hare with the hope that he wins the race with the Tortoise”. Determine the interests conveyed and retained in this transaction.
Answer:
The Hare has a fee simple absolute.
Remember The Rule of Hopeful Hare:
Defeasible fees require a determinate durational language. The words of mere desire, expectation or hope are not enough to create a defeasible fee.
This rule of construction exists because courts disfavor restrictions of the use of land.
The crock pot is a fine invention. I don’t use it for many things, but boy, do I like the 
beef stew prepared in the crock pot. You chop up the veggies and meat, add broth and tomatoes, and then the crock pot magic happens, and 8 hours later, or better yet, overnight, you have a delicious dish full of flavors with meat melting in your mouth.
Why am I talking about the crock pot today? Because just like you have to trust the crock pot to do its magic, there are times when you have to trust the learning process to get you where you need to be. A preparation for the bar exam is a case in point. You do your best listening to the lectures, reading, taking notes, reviewing, practicing, and trust that the magic is going to work and you will pass. At any given moment, there is a huge amount of information thrown at you. You don’t want to control every little detail because it’s not possible. What you want to do is to start doing practice questions right away and keep doing it. You won’t feel as if you know the law enough, but that’s OK. You have to trust the process. Practice teaches your brain to recognize patterns that are tested on the bar exam. Pattern recognition is central to your success, and you can’t learn it just by reading and memorizing. If you have to choose between practicing and reading the long outline, practice and review the answers. And when you feel overwhelmed and insecure of your knowledge, remind yourself to trust the process to do its magic, no matter how slow your progress may seem, it’s just like the crock pot.
Here’s good news and bad news about stress and memory delivered by SharpBrains. Bar candidates, listen in. Short-term, acute stress can help you concentrate and remember things better. That’s because the adrenal glands respond to the initial dose of stress by immediately releasing adrenalin, which can help your performance. However, long-term stress has the opposite effect. If the stress is severe or persistent, the adrenals release cortisol, which damages the neurons in the hippocampus, a part of the brain that is central to memory and learning. Make sure you take this quick test to measure your stress levels.
To find out more about how your brain responds to various stressful situations, check out Stress on the Brain from The Franklin Institute Resources for Science Learning.
How do you manage your stress levels? These 52 Proven Stress Reducers are a good place to start.
When you study for a multiple-choice exam, such as MBE, you need to read the 
questions and options very carefully. Your choice of the answer may depend on just one word. Can you recognize those powerful words that trigger legal standards, call for doctrines, or cunningly distract you? To practice identifying such words, try the following game. Once you solve the original hypothetical question, go back and change one or two words in the question in such a way that alters your analysis. Rewrite the hypo and see where it takes you. It’s a good game to play with your study group if you participate in one.
You have probably seen popular character names used in legal fact patterns. Most of 
them are there for pure entertainment. But fictional characters can do work for your memory as well. Here’s how – with the story of the Crow.
Hypothetical:
One day, the Fox was sleuthing around the Foxacre when he saw the Raven perched in a tree with a piece of cheese in his beak. The Fox was hungry and came up with a plan to get the cheese from the Raven. The Fox deeded the Foxacre “to the Raven so long as the Raven does not sing in his ugly voice on the Foxacre.” The Raven, anxious to refute the criticism of his voice, set up a loud caw and dropped the cheese. Determine the types of interest conveyed and retained in the transaction. Who owns the Foxacre now?
Answer:
The Fox conveyed a fee simple determinable to the Raven and retained a possibility of reverter. When the Raven began to caw, the limitation stated in the conveyance occurred and the estate automatically reverted back to the Fox.
The following phrase will help you remember the estate and the corresponding future interest:
Fox Simply Deceived Poor Raven.
Fee Simple Determinable and Possibility of Reverter.
If you are familiar with the Aesop fable “The Fox and the Crow,” this hypothetical can do a few things for you:
The familiar scenario when the Crow (Raven in my hypo because the letter “R” stands for “Reverter”) caws and drops the cheese, which the Fox immediately gets, reinforces the idea that the fee simple determinable is automatically terminated once the stated condition is broken. The sneaky Fox gets both the cheese and the estate in my hypo.
An additional benefit is the phrase that helps you to memorize the estate and the future interest.
Can you think of any scenarios from books or movies that inspire you to create your own memorable hypothetical for a flashcard?
**Those of you who have been reading my blog for a while (thank you, thank you!) know that I have done a number of such memory aids throughout my posts. If you find them helpful, please let me know because I may be able to work on more of those to have a study aid product. I’d greatly appreciate your feedback, so leave a comment or send me an email.
Still worried about the bar exam? Here’s a list of resources that can help you study for and pass the bar. (You can read my previous post here if you want my personal perspective on the bar exam experience.)
PLI offers bar exam tips from a panel of experts in the video and HTML text formats. Learn about Preparation Just Prior to Starting Your Bar Review Course. There is also advice on How to Write a Successful Bar Exam Answer and How Not to Be Conclusory.
Check out Passing the Bar site created by Professor Vernellia Randall. It covers a variety of topics related to the bar exam preparation, including Specific Study Advice and tips on how to Develop Keywords Flashcards.
FindLaw has a list of resources for the bar.
You can do it!
No groundbreaking secrets here, just the ground work to pass the bar. I ended up taking the bar exams in two states, Illinois and New York, due to the move. And, guess what… I am no longer in either of those states, but I don’t see a third bar exam in my future. So, the first lesson I’ve learned is not to move so much if you want to practice law, or work for the federal government, then a license from any state will do. Here are a few other things I learned:
Good luck!
Today I offer yet another approach to reviewing – I’ll call it “transformations.” The idea is to transform the material presented in one format into a different format and engage your multiple intelligences in the process. Here are some examples:
Linguistic intelligence. Make a list of the most challenging concepts and then write a coherent paragraph on each of them as if you are explaining the concept in an article. Find the most efficient ways to describe legal tests, rules, standards, so that you don’t have to waste time and words when you take an essay exam.
Logical-mathematical intelligence. Play with fact patterns and causalities. Start by analyzing a hypothetical, and once you have your solution, change the facts. Ask “what if” and observe how the changes in the fact pattern influence the outcome. List all the assumption you make as you are analyzing the situation. Verbalize every step in your argument.
Musical intelligence. Create musical jingles or rhymes to aid your memory. Record yourself speaking on the subject: your voice will reinforce the retention.
Spatial intelligence. Pick a topic in your outline and rearrange it into a flow chart or a table. Create a mind-map of what you have read.
Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. Listen to legal opinions while walking around campus. Do some repetitive movements as you study: you can juggle, do squats, pace around your room. If you feel creative, try molding a piece of clay as you are learning a concept. Here are more tips for kinesthetic learners.
Interpersonal intelligence. Participate in a study group. Explain the concept you are learning to somebody who has never studied law, answer their questions.
Intrapersonal intelligence. Be a reflective learner. Take time to figure out what works best for you and capitalize on your strengths. Ask yourself:
Naturalistic intelligence. Are there any similar laws, principles or categories that you can observe in the natural world?
Do you need memory boost? Here are a few suggestions of memory techniques that 
you can use as you review for the finals and, for some of you, for the upcoming bar exam, with the links to my earlier posts.
For more learning techniques, check out the Project Renaissance web site.
Many of you are approaching another round of finals. In order to give you more varied pointers on how to review before the exam, I decided to ask some people about their approaches to reviewing. Coincidently, my husband is studying for the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Level III exam right now, so I asked him. Here's how he thinks about reviewing material.
Let's assume that you've read through all the testable material. The goal in the review is to ensure that the information collected is converted into knowledge and insight. One way to do this is to consider three points:
Do you have any tips to share? Comments are always welcome. And there are more tips to come, so check back soon.
Spring semester flies by fast. Today I offer a round-up of my previous
posts and a few other resources on exam preparation to keep you on track with your studies.
To choose or not to choose: multiple choice tests
Get your pens ready: it’s time to scribble
Put on your detective hat: we are going issue-spotting
5 studying myths dispelled
Strategies and tools to plan your exam preparation
How to take exams with the champion’s mindset
The mosaic of legal analysis
And here is advice from Law School Academic Support Blog:
Take-home exams
More on Multiple Choice Testing
Study smart!
In his thought-provoking post How to Ace Finals Without Studying and the follow-up, Scott Young describes holistic learning and its benefits:
Learning holistically is not done by trying to remember information by using repetition and force. Holistic learners instead organize their minds like spider webs. Every piece of information is a single point. That point is then consciously related to tons of other points on the web. There are no boxes with this form of learning. Science becomes literature which becomes economics. Subject distinctions may help when going to class, but a holistic learner never sees things in a box.
The interconnectedness of ideas, concepts, experiences, disciplines is at the heart of holistic learning. Whether or not you practice holistic learning regularly, I think you are likely to experience the “magic” of holistic learning when you research and write a paper, work on a case in a clinic, or work on a project as an intern. You don’t try to memorize the material, but the engagement and thinking involved in the process will cause you to remember it even years later.
Holistic learning is synthesis on steroids. You establish connections not only between the legal concepts you study, but also link to other disciplines and areas of life in general. Law is fertile ground for this as it permeates almost everything around us. In addition, law is constantly evolving, so to understand where a legal standard stands in relation to other rules and doctrines on the grand scheme of things is more important than to know its current interpretation (that doesn’t apply to the bar exam). It is like star gazing when you identify the stars by their relative positions in the constellation. Issue-spotting is another context where the holistic approach will serve you well because you have to take the characteristics of the familiar pattern and extend it to a new situation.
So how do you approach the study of law holistically? Next time when you struggle to understand a legal concept, consider the following questions:
Mind-mapping can be a great tool to visualize these multiple levels of connections.
What do you think of holistic learning? Is it worth the time and effort? Does it really eliminate the need for the traditional cramming right before the exam? Have you experienced those "Aha! moments" when
things just "clicked" for you? How did you get there?
Do you appreciate constructive criticism? Does it make your angry? Do you feel hurt? All of the above? Constructive feedback is essential for learning. Feedback is a scarce commodity in law school. Students often don’t know how well they are doing until they see their grades. There is no homework to turn in so that the professor could evaluate your progress. There is very little team work in law school. In real life, you are going to hear criticism from partners, other associates, clients, opposing counsels, judges. Not so in law school. You need to be proactive in seeking feedback from your professors. The sooner you learn how to receive and act on the constructive feedback, the better off you are going to be. Here are ten tips for receiving feedback:
You are in law school to learn, and your professor is there to teach you. A feedback session can make the process easier for both of you.
Students sometimes have trouble composing analytical sentences. They describe 
the applicable legal standard, mention the facts, and end up with the conclusion rather than the analysis. For example, if I say: “The risk of injury to a tenant resulting from criminal activity on the premises was foreseeable because the landlord decreased the security in the building, the crime rate in the building increased, and the tenant complained about the security of the common areas to the landlord,” I stated a conclusion. I mentioned the legal standard of foreseeability and the facts that the landlord decreased the security, the crime rate went up, and the tenant complained. What’s missing is the analysis. Because the analysis is usually based on common sense and our understanding of how things work in the world, it’s easy to fill the analytical gap in the sentence above in our minds and forget to verbalize it. When I said that the landlord decreased the security in the building and the crime rate went up, you understood that to mean that the risk of injury to a tenant really existed. You wouldn' t have the same understanding if I told you that the building was vacant. When I said that the tenant complained about the security of the common areas to the landlord, you inferred that the landlord was aware of the problem with the common areas. Now, what if I tell your that the tenant had hallusinations, made up stories all the time, and everybody in the building knew about it?
The point is that you need to spell out that common sense understanding as part of your analysis. An analytical sentence would look something like this: “The risk of injury to a tenant resulting from criminal activity on the premises was foreseeable because the landlord knew that the crime rate in the building was increasing and it posed a risk to tenants since the tenant told him so when she complained about the security of the common areas.”
Some of you may find it helpful to compare the process of writing out the analysis to making a mosaic. Your mosaic board is the legal standard. The mosaic pieces are the facts. Before you start gluing the pieces to the board, you need to have a mental image of what you want to create, and you need to draw that image on the board so that you know where each piece goes. Similarly, you need to put into words your understanding of how facts meet the legal standard.
Related post:
Get your pens ready: it's time to scribble
Did you know that your brain uses 20 to 25 percent of the total energy
you consume? The better nourishment you provide for you brain, the better it works for you. But do you want to waste your mental power on planning healthy meals in the midst of studying for exams? Probably not, that’s why I’ve decided to share with you one of my favorite quick brain-friendly snacks – my hot pita sandwich.
Preheat the over to 350F. Place a whole-wheat pita on a baking sheet, you don’t need to cut or open the pita. Put a few slices of the red bell pepper on top, spice it up with salt and pepper. Next, add some deli turkey and top it off with a slice of mozzarella cheese. Put the sandwich in the oven until the cheese melts and turns golden brown in spots. Enjoy! If you don’t eat meat, a nice substitute combination would be a plum tomato, fresh basil leaves, and mozzarella cheese. And have a cup of green tea instead of a sugar- or aspartame-laden soda. It contains caffeine, so it will give you an energy boost. In addition, the polyphenols and tannins found in green tea have been shown to improve the brain function.
I also have a dessert for your memory. Do you remember which interests can be potentially affected by the Rule Against Perpetuities?
The following interests may violate the Rule Against Perpetuities:
1) vested remainders subject to open;
2) contingent remainders;
3) executory interests.
You can remember them by the mnemonic:
RAP STOPS CORE EXECS.
RAP = Rule Against Perpetuities
STOP = Vested Remained Subject To OPen
CORE = COntingent REmainder
EXECs = EXECutory interests.
No more time for whining and complaining. The exams are here. What do you
need to do your best? You need the winning mindset. And who knows more about winning than athletes? Much like law students, athletes endure grueling schedules, successes and setbacks, the pressure to perform and manage expectations of their coaches, families, sponsors. How do they mentally prepare for the competitions? According to Dr. Aimee Kimball, director of mental training at UPMS Sports Medicine: “Mental training gives athletes the knowledge and ability to control their thinking and emotions, and in turn, their performance.” Law students can also benefit from mental training techniques.
Do you have any mental training tips to share? Please leave a comment.
Apparently, I’ve read too many nursery rhymes to my almost one-year-old daughter. Those poems and songs keep circulating in my head. Yesterday, we read a cute book by Elizabeth Verdick entitled Tailes Are Not for Pulling. We’ve got two dogs in the house, so we decided to instill good pet habits early. The rhymes were stuck in my head for a while, and I had to do something about it. Pardon my venture into law school rhyming, here’s is my law exam advice:
Law tests are not for stressing; 
Multiple choice is not for guessing;
Essays are not for confusing;
Errors are not for excusing;
Issues are not for ignoring;
Test time is not for snoring;
Rules are not for misstating;
Facts are not for creating;
Professors are not for complaining;
Frustration is not for explaining;
Answers are not for comparing;
Grades are not for despairing.
Good luck on your tests!
When you have about a week left before your exams start, how can you ensure that you have enough time to cover everything you need? (As if you ever have enough time for anything in law school…) I found the answer in Granularity for students by Lifehack.org. It describes the application of the notion of “granularity” to studying. The “granularity” method presupposes breaking down a daunting task into smaller manageable parts. You can then prioritize and schedule those smaller projects accordingly.
Inspired by the idea, I put together a few tables in Excel with my husband’s help to assist students in breaking down and scheduling their study time. Download exam_schedule_tables.xls [Excel, 32.5KB] Here’s how you approach it:
It is pretty granular, but I found that sticking to a schedule helped especially when I had to study multiple subjects for the bar -- for two states, in fact, Illinois and later New York (yes, I was crazy enough to repreat the experience when we moved to New York a few years later). Let me know if you find this approach useful.
As many law students are heading home for their Thanksgiving Break, the Law School Academic Support Blog is Talking Turkey about the Thanksgiving Break. According to their advice, you need to do some planning to use this time effectively and balance your travel, family expectations, studying priorities and good times.
Speaking of the Thanksgiving dinner, did you know that an attorney invented cranberry sauce? I sure didn't till I read Thanksgiving Special: the Lawyer Who Invented Cranberry Sauce by JD Bliss. I personally like cranberry jelly made from fresh cranberries and dried apricots with a little bit of orange zest. Also, here is a link to my all-time favorite cranberry pumpkin bread, it's very easy to make.
This week I’ve been writing about exam-taking strategies, and I’d like to conclude my mini-series by addressing some of the studying myths that float around the university hallways.
Myth #1: Cramming will improve my chances.
We’ve all done it. You have only a few hours left before the exam, and there is still so much to learn and review. The problem with cramming is that you can’t stuff your brain like cabbage leaves. It won’t retain the information. However, it can make you too tired to take the test, which may cause you to forget what you knew pretty well before. It’s not worth it.
Myth #2: I’ll study every awaking hour to outperform the competition.
While it’s tempting to keep going and going, it is actually more efficient if you study for about 50 minutes and then take a 10-minute brake. There is some magic about 50 minutes. Your brain will like that pattern.
Myth #3: Burning the midnight oil is what all students do before the exams.
It’s only natural to sacrifice some sleep for the good of knowledge, isn’t it? Wrong. Studies that registered brain activation patterns of sleep-deprived participants showed that they performed worse on complex cognitive tasks when compared to rested participants. Make sure you get enough sleep before the tests.
Myth #4: You need complete silence to study well.
It may be true for some people who are very sensitive to sound distractions. However, listening to Baroque music like Mozart can improve your learning.
Myth #5: Everybody learns in the same way.
In reality, we all learn differently and need different studying techniques to capitalize on our strengths. See my previous post on multiple intelligences. Some students need pictures and flowcharts to improve understanding. Others may benefit from discussing the material with their classmates. Identify your learning style and adjust your studying strategy accordingly.
Finally, here is some truth to consider: positive attitude improves your performance. Give the Universe a holler that you are ready for that test.
“Some of the best lessons we ever learn we learn from our mistakes and failures. The error of the past is the wisdom and success of the future.” Tyron Edwards (1809-1894).
Everybody experiences setbacks in law school. What makes a difference is how you handle them. Successful people know how to turn their failures and mistakes into learning opportunities. In fact, the word ‘failure’ is not even in their vocabulary. The trick is to own up to your mistake, determine what you need to do differently, overcome the negative emotions and change the detrimental behavior. Admission of a mistake may be a hard thing to do for a lawyer as we are in business of assigning blame, but accepting responsibility is the first step to understanding and learning. If you are not satisfied with your grade, create an opportunity to improve and do better next time. Here are a few questions and suggestions for your post action review:
